How DEI Betters Business - with Subha Barry
Description
President & CEO of Seramount, Subha Barry tells us about her connections with neurodiversity, her widely recognized Autism Intern program, and gives practical advice on how to advance your DEI efforts in today’s corporate world.
A trailblazer in diversity, equity, and inclusion, Subha Barry shares a wealth of insights through her work as President and CEO at Seramount. Barry shares her personal and professional journey from India to the United States, and her pioneering initiatives at Merrill Lynch and Freddie Mac, including her widely recognized Autism intern program at Freddie Mac. Key topics include the importance of embedding DEI into business strategies without relying solely on HR, understanding neurodiversity, and practical ways to create inclusive workplaces. She also gives her take on how she thinks leaders should approach DEI and foster better relationships with employees.
Subha Barry is a C-suite leader and an advisor who brings a unique perspective on the alignment of corporate culture to talent strategy and business results. As a transformational change agent, she has a proven record of identifying and accelerating new business creation, driving sales, and increasing profitability.
Subha is president of Seramount where she drives the firm’s vision, strategy, and business development. Subha joined Working Mother Media (WMM) in 2015 and during her tenure she dramatically improved margins, expanded its portfolio through growth in high-value consulting and learning and development, exponentially grew their client roster, and recruited talented executive leaders to amplify subject matter and functional expertise. In 2021, Subha oversaw the brand’s transformation from WMM to Seramount, a leading strategic professional services and research firm dedicated to building high-performing, inclusive workplaces. Today, Seramount works with 450+ organizations globally, including half of the Fortune 500, to help our partners navigate today’s talent and DEI landscape.
Previously, Subha was senior vice president and chief diversity officer at Freddie Mac, where she served on the firm’s management committee and led their foundation. Prior to her time at Freddie Mac, Subha spent 20+ years at Merrill Lynch as managing director and their first global head of diversity & inclusion where she built their D&I strategy, infrastructure and execution plans from the ground up. She also created a highly successful Multicultural Business Development Group to focus their wealth management business on diverse and multicultural communities bringing in over $8 billion in new assets and $50+ million in annual revenues in just three years. She began her career at the firm as a financial advisor where she was a top 100 advisor among 16,000 in the firm.
Subha is a former adjunct professor at Columbia University’s SIPA, and currently serves on the Boards of SHRM Foundation, Rice 360, Rutgers Cancer Center and the Rutgers Institute of Women’s Leadership. She is also a Board Advisor at PE-owned Snowden Lane Partners. In the past, Subha has served on a variety of Boards as Board Chair, Head of Nominating & Governance, Finance, and HR and DEI Committees.
A native of India, Subha holds a BA from Bombay University and an MBA and MS in Accounting from Rice University. She enjoys golfing, reading poetry and rallying for social change. She has two grown children and lives in Naples, Florida and New Hope, PA with her husband.
CHAPTERS
04:00 Subha’s story and journey in DEI
08:00 Connecting DEI to the business
09:40 Seramount’s initiatives and the focus on neurodiversity
13:00 Multicultural initiatives at Merrill Lynch and relying on HR for talent issues
16:38 Diverse culture shift in Canada
19:00 Subha’s experience with neurodiversity and personal connection with autism
21:40 Freddie Mac’s Autism Internship Program
30:50 Positive examples of DEI initiatives in workplaces and the community
33:00 Kids and their parents being diagnosed with a neurodiverse condition
37:45 How we can think about #flexbility is inclusivity
41:30 Measuring results of DEI initiatives and how it connects to business
45:43 How the Happy Space Work Style Profile fits
47:00 Remembering the individual in discussions around neurodiversity
49:30 How can leaders engage more with DEI
LINKS
Ep. 41 - Katie Mooney - How DEI Efforts Must Change to Have Maximum Impact
Freddie Mac Neurodiversity Awareness
Freddie Mac Autism Intern Program
Happy Space Work Style Profile
IMAGE CREDITS (see images on Youtube video)
Working Mother Media Logo - Youtube
Working Mother Magazine - Wiki
Freedie Mac Logo - Freddiemac.com
Merrill Lynch Logo - ML.com
Seramount Logo - Seramount.com
Subha Barry Headshot - Subha Barry
Other Images and Video - Canva
Learn more about and follow Subha:
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Highly sensitive executive coach and productivity catalyst, Clare Kumar, explores the intersection of productivity and inclusivity exploring how we can invite the richest contribution from all through improvements in design and culture. She works bottom-up - coaching individuals in sidestepping burnout and cultivating sustainable performance, and top-down – working with leaders to design inclusive performance thereby inviting teams to reach their full potential. As a speaker, Clare mic-drops “thought balms” in keynotes and workshops, whether virtual or in-person. She invites connection through her online community committed to designing sustainable and inclusive performance, the Happy Space Pod. Why? Because everyone deserves a Happy Space.
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CREDITS
Audio and Video Editing: Jaclyn Enchin
Production Assistant: Rafael Dona
Song Credit: Cali by Wataboi / wataboi
Creative Commons — Attribution 3.0 Unported — CC BY-SA 3.0Music promoted by FDL Music • Cali - Wataboi · [Copyright-free Music]
United States
